PITCH YOUR BUSINESS IDEA TO INTERNATIONAL INVESTORS

(Open only to College Students - Valid ID Required)

This business plan competition provides college-student entrepreneurs real world experience to pitch their business plan, improve their business strategy and learn from the industry experts what it takes to launch a successful company.

Hosted and organized by FiTEN (FeTNA International Tamil Entrepreneur Network).

FeTNA (Federation of Tamil sangams of North America) is an umbrella organization of Tamil Sangams that functions within the North American continent, FeTNA is devoted to cultivate and promote global Tamil entrepreneurship, foster, and develop the advancement of knowledge in Tamil language and culture. The objective of this business plan competition is to promote “academia to entrepreneur”.

ELIGIBILITY

Your college team should meet the following eligibility criteria:

• A minimum of 2 student founders, and are currently enrolled an undergraduate degree program in a recognized college or university
• Student-driven, student-created and/or student-managed (External board advisors can be included)
• Business plan should fall into one of the sectors like socio-economic impact, agriculture, education, health and climate change
• Should not have generated revenue of more than ₹ 1,00,000 in any 12-month period prior to July 1, 2022
• Seeking funding or capital (or will be in the next 12 months) and is a potentially viable investment opportunity

HOW TO APPLY

The designated leader of your startup team should complete the simple online application by (One application per team)

• Answering the application form survey questions
• Attaching an executive summary in PDF (maximum 5 pages)
• Providing a YouTube link of your video elevator pitch (maximum 2 minutes)

Fill out the online application form here

OTHER INSTRUCTIONS

• There are no fees to apply or to compete
• Multiple student teams from the same college/university may apply to compete
• Startup teams comprised of students from more than one college may apply
• All students should provide valid identifications
• Student startup teams from the State of Tamil Nadu can only apply
• Once an application is submitted, no changes can be made except withdrawal
• Submit your online application from the competition website https://www.fiten.org/student-business-plan-pitch/
• The online application must be completed by January 2^nd 2023 at 11:59 PM IST
• Finalists will be notified via email or phone on or before, January 3^rd 2023 11:59 PM IST
• The selection panel's decision will be final

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

An executive summary is mandatory and it should follow the following guidelines:

• Submit files in PDF. No other formats will be accepted
• Length should be at least 2 pages and not more than 5 pages
• The cover page and appendices do not count toward the 5-page total
• Should include your team name in the footer of every page
• Do not mark your executive summary as confidential. Otherwise, it may not get screened!

We recommend the following information in your executive summary:

• Company summary: Describe in the problem the startup company is addressing, the technology solution, product, or offering, and who are the potential customers. (1-2 paragraphs)
• Customer analysis: Explain who the potential customers are and what problem you are solving. Describe any customer/market validation (i.e., what evidence do you have that customers will pay for the product)
• Market analysis: Describe the market size, targeted segments and potential market share
• Product or service: Describe the current state of development of the product or service and any technology validation to date (i.e., what evidence do you have that the technology works)
• Intellectual property: Provide status of patents, licenses, or other IP (if applicable)
• Competitive advantage: Explain the competition and show what makes this startup better than competitive alternatives
• Company Founders, Management team and/or advisor: All current college-going students include brief bios of the startup founder to show how this team has the expertise to successfully launch a startup (including relevant experience)
• Financials: Provide a 3-5 year projection of revenue, profit and cash flow amount of investment you are seeking and use of funds

VIDEO ELEVATOR PITCH

• Each team will submit an optional 30 to 120 second video elevator pitch as part of the online application. This is encouraged but not required; it is seen as supporting evidence for the application
• Upload your video to YouTube or Vimeo, and paste the link into the appropriate field in the application.
• Ensure the YouTube or Vimeo settings include permission to embed the video on an external site If you wish to restrict viewing, you may set the privacy settings to "Unlisted" (but NOT "Private")
• The focus should be on your presentation and content, not on video production quality

BENEFITS

• For student founders, this FiTEN's first-ever "Chennai 2023 Business Plan Competition" offers real world opportunities to learn what's required to successfully launch a new business.
• In addition to the substantial cash, possible investment and in-kind prizes, the heart of the competition is the mentoring from US international investors and experienced entrepreneurs.